Hydraulic press construction



March 26, 1957 H. F. BAKEWELL 2,786,410

HYDRAULIC PRESS CNSTRUCTION Filed Jan. 18, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 March26, 1957 H. F. BAKEWELL HYDRAULIC PRESS CONSTRUCTION 5 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed Jan. 18, 1949 l 1N VEN TOR. QLQD/Nc; ,DAKEWELL H. F. BAKEWELLHYDRAULIC PRESS CONSTRUCTION March 26, 1957 Filed Jan. 18, 19419 5Sheets-Sheet 3 March 26, 1957 H. F. BAKEWELL 2,786,410

HYDRAULIC PRESS CONSTRUCTION Filed Jan. 18,l 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 fil?.1l; i E 75 l g f LA] liu ieservof'r I g A y I INVENTOR.

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March 26, 1957 H. F. BAKEWELL HYDRAULIC PRESS CONSTRUCTION 5Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Jan. 18, 1949 INVENTOR. Meow@ llfwaz.,

J Aff .v--roe/wsys United States Patent O HYDRAULIC PRESS CONSTRUCTIONHarding F. Bakewell, San Marino, Calif.

Application January 18, 1949, Serial No. 71,527

6 Claims. (Cl. 100-269) The present invention relates generally tohydraulic presses and similar machine tools, and more particularly tohydraulic presses designed for extremely heavy loadings, reachingmagnitudes heretofore unknown.

So far as is known, the number of hydraulic presses designed for totalloads of the order of ten thousand tons and up, is very limited. Ofcourse the greatest obstacle to building a conventional style of pressof this size lies in the need for a frame big enough to withstand thereaction to the total working loads. In relatively small presses, theframe can be of a general C-shape in which the reaction loading producesa combination of tension and bending stresses. ln larger presses, thisloading has been changed by building a structural steel frame in whichthe loads are taken almost entirely in tension. A structural steel frameable safely to resist a loading ot ten thousand tons or more withoutundue deformation must be a massive affair which is not only diflicultto design but expensive to construct.

As an example of the construction problems, it is estimated that the bedalone of a sixty thousand ton press would weigh some 50() tons or more.This is too large a piece to be made as a single casting of theconventional type; and even if it could be cast, it could not betransported to the place of use as railways and highways cannot carryloads of such size and weight. These considerations point tothe need fornovel features permitting assembly of the press in place from partsfabricated elsewhere.

It is therefore a particular object of my invention to provide ahydraulic press construction of unprecedented size, having a capacity inthe vicinity of sixty thousand tons or more.

It is also an object of my invention to provide a novel type ofhydraulic press construction which dispenses with the conventional typeof frame structure necessary to resist the reaction to the workingloads.

A further object of the invention is to provide a hydraulic pressconstruction of novel design which permits the application of heretoforeunprecedented working loads with a structure of comparative simplicityand low cost.

Another object of my invention is to devise a press constructionutilizing as far as possible prefabricated parts that do not requirespecial machine tools for machining the parts and can be assembled inplace with a minimum of labor and effort.

t is also another object of the invention to provide a hydraulic pressof the character described which is relatively simple in constructionand maintenance and reliable in operation.

These and other objects and advantages are attained according to myinvention by building a hydraulic press between two spaced earthenmasses or walls which resist the reaction to the working loads andtransmit the reaction to the earths crust. These walls may be suppliedin a natural manner, as for example by utilizing ICC the Walls of anarrow canyon or a fissure in the earths crust, or a cave, in which casethe ceiling and door may be used. Since the location of suitable naturalformations may not always be advantageous, it is contemplated that suchspaced earthen walls or masses may be prepared at convenient locations,as by driving a shaft into the ground and forming at the inner end ofthe shaft a chamber of a suitable size to receive the press. Thisarrangement has the advantage that the size and location of the chambercan be controlled as desired and that it then may be possible to utilizea denser stronger material, as for example bedrock, which has arelatively higher unit bearing power. The shaft can be vertical,horizontal, or inclined, as may be best suited to conditions.

' The two earthen masses are suitably spaced to provide a pair of spacedopposing faces. An abutment of the press is placed in load transmittingcontact with each of the opposed faces, and the remainder of thehydraulic press means is between and bears against the abutments whenthe Working load is applied to the press. If the press is a verticalone, the entire deadweight of the press and its component parts may restupon one abutment which in turn rests upon the floor or bottom wall ofthe chamber. lf the press is horizontal, much of the dead load of thecomponent parts may be supported in dependently of either abutment,although it is preferable to maintain a certain minimum pressure againsteach abutment at all times.

In a preferred form of the invention, earthen masses occurring naturallyin whole or in part are used to provide buttresses of suitable size andspacing that are part of and interconnected by the earths crust. Thebuttresses are then relatively immovable under the working loads appliedhorizontally to them.

How the above objects and advantages of my invention, as well as othersnot specifically mentioned herein, are attained will be more readilyunderstood by reference to the following description and to the annexeddrawings, in which:

Fig. l is a vertical section through a vertical shaft and chamber in theearth, showing schematically the arrangement therein of a horizontalpress, the figure being vertically compressed;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged View of the press and other portions of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an elevation of the press of Fig. 2 taken on line 3 3 of Fig.2;

Fig. 4 is a plan of the press construction of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary plan and horizontal section on line 5 5 of Fig.2 showing construction details of two typical individual cylinders;

Fig. 6 is a vertical section on line 6-6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic layout of the main system for supplyinghydraulic fluid under pressure to the press;

Fig. 8 is a vertical section on line 8-8 of Fig. 7 through the meteringdevice;

Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic layout of the auxiliary system for supplyinghydraulic fluid under pressure;

Fig. l0 is a vertical section through a horizontal shaft and chamber inthe earth showing a variational form, of my invention; and

Fig. 1l is an elevation on line 11-11 of Fig. 10.

Fig. l represents a vertical section through a portion of the press,indicated at 14 and 15. Thus the 'two abut`l ments 14 and 15 arethemselves spaced apart and substantially vertically extending.Abutments 14 and 15 are preferably heavy metal plates or the like, orbuilt-up structures if desired. They do not bear directly againstthenativerock or soil which provides the wall faces V12 unless -faces 12are polished smooth; but a layer of high strength concrete 16, or othersimilar moldable or plastic material, is introduced between the wallfaces and the abutments in order to form a matrix that levels off theinequalities of the walls i2 and receives the abutments to evenlydistribute the load from the abutment over the associated earthen face12. Concrete layer 15 also assist-s in keeping the abutments in positionby fastening them to the earthen walls.

The earth masses may be naturally occurring or articially formed inwhole or in part. I prefer to drive a shaft into the earth and at theend enlarge it as necessary to form a `press chamber. This permits thepress construction t-o be enclosed and protected and, if desired,

concealed. Also it is possible to reach a strong dense rock formation toprovide the walls 12; but it -is to be understood that my invention isnot necessarily so limited since masses of sand or soil may besufficiently compacted las to yprovide the desired bearing power. Forthis reason, shaft 10 may be of any desired length or shape.

The stationary bed of the press comprises labutment 14, stationary dieor bed plate 18 and an -intermediate load distributing member 20disposed between the stationary bed plate and the abutment. 29isdesigned so that the transverse cross sections change progressively'in the direction of thrust. It is here shown a being in the shape of atruncated rectangular pyramid with the smaller base engaging the backside of plate 18 and the larger base engaging the front side of abutment14, but other suitable shapes may be used, if desired, which are adaptedto distribute the load of the bed plate over a larger area on theabutment. As shown particularly in Fig. 2, the total area of abutment 14may be still larger than the area of the larger base of loaddisitributing means -20 in contact with the abutment.

The load distributor 20 lis composed -of ya plurality of metal 'bars ofrectangular cross sect-ion larranged in a plurality of layers parallelto plate 18 with the .bars of successive layers extending atsubstantially right angles to each o-ther. The layers are shown ashaving progressively changing numbers of bars `of the same size. Thenumber may change at a selected regular interval, as every other layeror every fourth layer according to the rate of increase of the area overwhich the load is disf" tributed.v In lth'is construction, as will beapparent from Fig. 2, the layer with the smallest number of bars isadjacent the bed plate while the layer with the largest number yof barsis adjacent abutment 143. However, other arrangements of bars may beused, since wider bars may be used at equal spacings instead of a largernumber of Ibars or the spacing between bar-s may be changed from onelayer to another.

In constructing the press, it is contemplated that the bars will be allfinished to provide two flat, parallel faces on each so that maximumbearing and accurate alignment are secured. When in place the bars arewelded to each other to build up the crib-like Iarrangement fordistributing the loa-d. The bars are of a conventional size and are madeof cold rolled steel or other stock having a high compression strength.

Cooperating with the stationary bed of the press, is the traveling headwhich is of similar construction to the bed except lthat the parts arearranged in reverse order. The traveling head comprises'movable platenor die plate 21, load distributing means 22 and pressure plate V24. Loaddistributing means 22 is constructed in the same manner as the loaddistributing means 20 just described. It serves to distribute theWorking'load on platen 21 over a larger area on'pressure plate 24, whicharea is prefer- Load distributing means ably something less than thetotal area of pressure plate 24. As will be apparent from laterdescription, the load distributing means 22 may also be Viewed as aforce concentrator, the object of which is to concentrate the unitpressure applied to the pressure plate to a higher unit pressure appliedIto platen 21.

interposed between abutment 15 `and pressure plate 24 is hydraulic meansfor moving the platen `and traveling head with respect to bed plate 13and the stationary press bed. This hydraulic means comprises a pluralityof individuai and separate cylinders 26 with their longitudinal axesparallel to each other and perpendicular tothe face of abutment l5.Typical cylinders are shown in detail in Fig. 5 and each preferablycomprises a base 2S to which is attached a cylindrical tube that formsthe cylinder walls and within which piston 29 is axially movable. Inorder to mount the cylinders in place, abutment 15 is preferablyprovided with `a plurality of vertically extending grooves 30 withoutwardly converging side walls so that the cylinder bases 28 can befastened to the abutment by a dovetail connection. This arrangementpermits the bases 2 of a number of cylinders to Ibe inserted in theupper end of a groove 3i) and lowered within the groove to form avertically extending row of cylinders. The bases are square, as shown inFig. 6, and rest one upon another. The outer ends of the cylinders arepositioned by spacers 32 4to keep the axes of the cylinders properlyaligned and parallel. The fluid under pressure is admitted to thecylinder interior through a passage 33 formed within the cylinder base23; and pressure is retained within the cylinder by O-rings 34 and 35 inthe base and piston respectively, or other suitable packing.

Although other types of hydraulic cylinders may be used, the particularconstruction utilizing a large number of individual, open-endedcylinders with a piston projecting outwardly from the open end of eachcylinder has been `adopted because of its simplicity. The cylinders andpistons can be easily made from materials of standard sizes andassembled `on the job. Not only is original manufacture simplified butreplacement and repair are likewise rendered easy.

A large number of relatively small hydraulic cylinders is preferredbecause unit stresses and pressures are lower and the parts are mucheasier to manufacture. The cylinders are arranged as closely together aspossible on abutment 15 so that the maximum number of pistons can bebrought to bear against the back side of pressure plate 24, for 4a givenarea on the plate. As shown in Figs. 5 and 2, the ends of the pistonsmay be slightly rounded in order to keep the area of contact of eachpiston centrally located on it and so eliminate eccentric loadings onthe piston.

When walls 12 and abutments 14 and 15 extend vertically as in Fig. 2,the press is of the horizontal type in that the movement of the platenand the direction of application of working force are both horizontal.To support the platen during this horizontal movement, there is provideda pair of ways 33 and 39, as shown in Fig. 3. One of the ways as shownat 38, has a V-shaped upper surface which is designed to give lateralguiding action to the platen as it moves back and forth along the way,since deviation from a straight line movement is resisted by theinclined sides of the top surface of way 33. One or more additional ways39 are provided having at top surfaces. A way of this character merelysupports the vertically imposed weight of the traveling press head. Ways38 and 39 are supported upon foundations 4t) which support the ways andthe dead weight of the traveling head independently of the abutments. Asshown in Fig. 2, foundations d@ may have enlarged'footingsat the ends tosupport better the weight of the abutments. Foundations 40 arepreferably set in a matrix di of concrete or similar material to enableit to evenly and more widely distribute its load over the earthenformation on which it rests.

Although the principal hydraulic means provided by cylinders 26 movesthe platen during pressing operations, it is desirable to provideauxiliary hydraulic means adapted to move the platen back and forth, aswhen the dies are being brought into initial engagement with the work orwhen the platen is being moved away from Ithe work to permit withdrawalof the work from the dies. This auxiliary hydraulic means comprises apair of opposing hydraulic cylinders 42 and 43 pivotally connected toabutments 14 and 15 respectively at each of the four corners of theabutments. Each cylinder has a piston 44 yor 45 respectively which ispivotally connected to one corner of pressure plate 24. By fillingcylinders 43 with pressure fluid, pistons 45 are forced outwardly andpressure plate and platen 21 are advanced toward the Work and stationarybed 18. Reverse movement of lthe pressure plate and platen occurs whencylinders 42 are filled with fluid under pressure to force pistons 44outwardly.

Abutments 14 and 15 are held in spaced relation at all times by means ofadjustable braces 50 located at the corners of the abutments. In asimplified form, the braces 50 consist of compression posts providedwith nuts 51 which may be screwed down against sleeves 52 in order toplace posts 50 under compression. The outward pressure thus exertedholds the abutments rmly against the bearing walls 12 and helps maintainproper relative positions of the abutments.

Since it is desirable that posts 50 be automatically extended tocompensate for settlement of either abutment, the end of each post isspaced from the base of the socket and sleeve 52, and hydraulic uidunder pressure is preferably introduced therein by pipe 53. Braces 50thus automatically extend to maintain a constant minimum pressurebetween the abutments inthe event of any settlement causing theabutments to move apart.

A preferred form of fluid supply system is show-n schematically in Fig.7, and also in part in Fig. 4. The fluid supply system comprises one ormore low volume, high pressure pumps 55 and a high volume, low pressurepump 56 each driven by a suitable prime mover, as for example electricmotors 57 and 58 respectively. Fluid is supplied to the pumps fromreservoir 60 vthrough suitable piping. The output from the high pressurepumps passes through check valves 61 which maintain unidirectional flowin the lines. A common delivery line 63 leads from pumps 55 toaccumulators 64 and to metering device 66. The ou'tput from the lowpressure pump 56 also enters delivery line 63 at a point beyond checkvalve 62. The fluid delivery line 63 is divided into a plurality ofbranches 67, here shown as four in number, each leading into a separatechamber 68 in meter 66. Each chamber 68 is circular in outline andcontains an eccentrically mounted rotor 69 driven by shaft 70 andprovided with a plurality of radially sliding vanes 71. Thisconstruction is similar to a conventional sliding vane rotary pump. Thequantity of fluid passed by each chamber is proportional to its volume;and for a given diameter, lthe volume varies directly with the axiallength of the chamber. Shaft 7th extends entirely through meter 66 andhas attached to it the four rotors 69 disposed one in each chamber 68.Shaft 70 is driven through gears'72 and shaft 73 from any suitable primemover, not shown in the drawings.

By turning rotors 69 in unison, meter 66 receives fluid under pressurefrom lines 67 and discharges, a quantity of fluid under pressure intoeach of lines 74 that is proportional to the volume of the correspondingchamber 68 in meter 66. The four pipe lines 74 conduct the fluid underpressure to manifold 75 which is provided with four separate andindividual chambers to each of which one pipe line 74 is connected.Pressure fluid leaves each chamber of manifold 75 through a plurality ofpipes 77, therebeing one such pipe for each cylinder 26. Some of thepipes, especially pipes 77, have been omitted from the figures in theinterest of simplicity and clarity. Each pipe' 77 is connected to thefluid passage 33 in base 28 of the cylinder, as shown in Fig. 5.

By this arrangement, the delivery of fluid from the fluid supply systemis controlled to equalize the quantity of fluid received by each chamberof manifold and the group of hydraulic cylinders receiving fluidtherefrom. In the arrangement just` disclosed, the cylinders are dividedalong horizontal lines into four groups, one above another, each groupbeing supplied from a separate manifold chamber and the total amount offluid received by that group being determined by one of the units ofmeter 66. As shown in Fig. 3, the number of lines 77 leading from eachmanifold chamberr to the top and bottom groups of cylinders is smallerthan the number to the two middle groups. The two inner chambers 68 ofmeter 66 are larger than the end chambers in proportion to the number ofcylinders supplied from those chambers and the corresponding middlechambers of manifold 75. Consequently every cylinder receivessubstantially the same volume of fluid per unit time. The purpose ofthis arrangement is to insure equal advance of the platen at the top andbottom and to prevent its misalignment with respect to the stationarybed plate 18, as might otherwise occur when the die contacts the Workinitially at a single poin't with the result that not all cylinders 26encounter an equal resistance. Uneven resistance would create unequalfluid distribution unless some fluid metering device is used. It will beobvious without further detailed description how the number of groups ofcylinders may be increased by, sub-.dividing the present groups alongeither horizontal or vertical lines. In this event, the number ofconducting lines 74, chambers in manifold 75, and units in meter 6 6 areall increased accordingly.

Fluid under pressure may be delivered to cylinders 42 and 43 either frompump S6 or by a separate fluid supply means, if desired. The latterarrangement is preferred and isr here illustrated in Fig. 9 ascomprising four sep arate positive displacement pumps S0 which aresupplied with fluid by lines 79 from reservoir 60 and all driven inunison by one electric motor 81, or other prime mover, by a single shaft81a. The delivery line 82 from each pump has two branches 82a and 82beach adapted to deliver fluid under pressure to one of cylinders 42 or43, respectively. Delivery to a selected branch 82a or 82!) iscontrolled by suitable valves, as at 83, and may be at a comparativelyhigh or low pressure as desired. There being fourpairs of cylinders 42and 43, it is essential that the advance of all four pistons 44 or 45 beequal. For that reason it is preferred to use four positive displacementpumps of equal size delivering fluid at the same rate; although othermetering means, such as the type previously described, may be used.

Cylinders 42 and 43 being opposed to each other, one is exhaustednecessarily when the other is filled. For this purpose valves -83 aremade four-way valves and the line 84 at each valve is a fluid returnline connected to the main return line 89 leading to reservoir 60. Whenthe valves are in the position of Fig. 9, the fluid under pressureI`goes to cylinders 43 while the exhaust fluid from cylinders 42 goes backthrough lines 82a and 84 to 89 and reservoir 60. When valves 83 arerotated 90, cylinders 42 are filled and cylinders 43 are exhausted.Valves 83. are preferably interconnected to all move together. Of coursethe invention is not limited to this particular piping arrangement, itbeing possible to use others that may occur to persons skilled in theart.

All the component parts of the fluid supply means `showndiagrammatically in Figs. 7 and 9 may be located at any suitable place,as for example in the bay or recess 85 in one of the side walls of thepress chamber.

The operation of the press is controlled from any suitable location,preferably some location from which the operator can watch the work inthe press, as control ele' vator 86 in a bay 87 in one of the side wallsof the chamber. Elevator 86 carries with it control console 88 on whichall the. necessary controlsV are. grouped. These.

to reservoir 60Vthrough, lines 89; and controls for craneV 90 at thehead of shaft 10 by. means of. which the work can be lowered tothe pressand raised to the ground surface.

I sha1-l now describe briefly the operation of the press. Initially, theplaten` 21 is moved away from stationary bed plate 18 by moving theplaten toward the left as viewed in Fig. 2. This is accomplished byintroducing pressure iluid. into cylinders 42, thus vforcing pistons 44out ofthe cylinders and moving pressure plate 24-to the left. Thismovement causes pistons 29 and 145 to move into hydraulic cylinders 26and 43 respectively, exhausting fluid from all these cylinders intoreservoir 60. Return flow from cylinders 26 is in a reverse directionthrough lines 77, manifolds 75 and a portionof lines 74.

A check valve 74a in each line 74 automatically closes toy prevent thereverse flow from entering the meters 66, and valves 89a are opened bythe operator to divert ow from lines 74 into return lines 89 whichVempty into reservoir 6l?. Return ow from cylinders 43 (and alsocylinders 42 when they are exhausted) isthrough lines 84 which` areconnected directly to return lines 89 as mentioned above. Thisinitialmovement of the platen can be accomplished at a relativelylow,pressure and high speed. Next, suitable dies (notr shown)areattached to the die plates 13 and 21 and the material to be worked islowered by'V crane 90 into position between the dies. This operation iscontrolled by an. operator on control platform S6, and heraises orlowers the platform to bring himself into position from which he canbest view the work of the press. i

Initial movement of the platen to the work can be accomplished atrelatively high speed and low pressure by introducing fluid at alowpressure into cylinders 26, thus forcing outwardly pistons 29 whichmove pressure plate 24 toward the right as viewed in Fig. 2. Thismovement can be continued until light initial engagement of the dieswith the work piece is obtained. Alternatively, movement of thetraveling head toward the stationary bed can be accomplished by usingpumps 80 to introduce fluid into cylinders 43, thus moving pistons 45 tothe right asviewed in Fig. 2. The final power stroke requires theapplication of relatively tremendous pressures and so must beaccomplished by introducing uid at high pressure into each of cylinders26. Because of the relatively large total volume of all the cylinders26, forward movement of pressure plate24 and platen 21 is comparativelyslow when using the highpressure system. Because of the large number ofhydraulic cylinders in the group applying pressure. to plate 24, anunprecedented total workingv force is made available, even though thehighest pressure in the high pressure hydraulic system is not unusuallyhigh. By keeping the size. of kcylinders 26 relatively small, thehydraulic lines supplying liquid thereto may likewise be small and allthese parts can be economically designed to resist the kmaximum loadingimposed upon them.

In the drawings ,I have shown eleven horizontally spaced, verticallyextending rows of cylinders 26 with twenty-two .cylinders in eachrow.This is a `total of 242 cylinders in the primary hydraulic system. Ifthe net area to which hydraulic pressure is applied on each piston 29is' 100 square inches and the maximum working pressure within eachcylinder is"5,000 poundspersquare inch,

8 thenthe total force exerted by each piston 29-is 500,000 pounds. Thegross working force that can be applied to pressure plate 24 by allpistons 29 is then 121,000,000 pounds,`or slightly over 610,000 tons.

There is illustrated in Figs. 10 and 11 a variational form of myinvention in which the shaft 10a inthe ground' is a horizontal shaftwith the press chamber atV the inner end of the shaft. This is a typicalinstallation when the pressl is located in a mountain. Under thesecircumstances, it may be preferablerto utilize the floor and ceiling ofthe press chambers as the opposed spaced walls 12 between which thepress is located in load transmitting engagement with both walls. Thepress is then the vertical type, that is, the traveling head moves in avertical path relative to a stationary bed comprising bed plate 18, loaddistributing member 20, and abutment 14 Which are stationary andsupported on the floor of the chamber.

In general, the construction of the vertical type press is the same asthe horizontal type press previously described, with the exception thatgravity may be utilized to lower the traveling head toward the press bedso that hydraulic means for this purpose can be dispensed with, and theentire dead load of the component parts of the press is carried on oneabutment and one of the opposed vment 15 and so maintain abutments 14and 15 properly spaced and aligned in thevsame manner as braces 50; and1n addition these four posts guide the traveling head in its movementtoward and away from the press bed. This is accomplished by providingpressure plate 24 with extensions through which posts 91l pass; and, inorder to attain greater rigidity, a frame 92 mounted on the upper loaddistributing member 22 also slides on guides 91. Thus the traveling headis slidably mounted on these corner guides to direct its movement.

A plurality of hydraulic cylinders 94 and pistons 95 therein areprovided, there being shown in the drawings four such piston andcylinder arrangements located two at each end of the press. Thesecylinders constitute the auxiliary hydraulic means adapted, to move theplaten upwardly away from the bed plate 18, it being understood that nohydraulic means for reverse movement is required because downwardmovement is under the force of gravity.

One or more bays 97 are formed in the chamber side walls to accommodatethe fluid supply systems, the operating console and any other auxiliaryequipment that may be desired. With the vertical press, it may-bepreferable to omit the control elevator 36 and to mount the controlconsole 88 ina fixed location.

Although the changes in construction described in connection with theform of press shown inFigs. 10 and 11 may bring about minor vchanges inoperation, it will be understood that the general principles ofoperation of the two forms of press are the same. For example, gravitymay be used to lower theplaten and die to engagement with the work,instead of using hydraulic means. During the following work stroke, theVweight of the platen, pressure plate, and the upper load distributingmeans 22 are added to the pressure of the pistons to determine the totalworking force applied.

Having described certain embodiments of my invention,

it will be understood that various changes in theform, construction, andarrangement of parts will occur to and may be made by persons skilledinthe art without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention;and consequently I wish it understood that the foregoing description isconsidered to be illustrative of, rather than limitative upon, theappended claims.

I claim:

1. In a very heavy-dutythydraulic `press construction,

the combination comprising: a pair of spaced earthen masses; a pair offixed spaced abutments, an abutment being in work-load transmittingrelation to each of said earthen masses and one abutment having aplurality of spaced parallel grooves; a stationary bed plate'supportedby the other of said abutments in load transmitting relation thereto; amovable platen cooperating with the bed plate; and hydraulic means formoving the platen toward the bed plate to apply working forces, saidhydraulic means comprising a relatively great plurality of separate,open ended hydraulic cylinders individually and slidably supported onsaid one abutment in load transmitting relation thereto and a piston ineach cylinder projecting beyond the cylinder into engagement with theplaten, the hydraulic cylinders being arranged in a plurality of closelyadjacent rows each of which rows includes a plurality of closelyadjacent cylinders slidably mounted in a single groove by a dovetailconnection at the base of the cylinder.

2. A hydraulic press as in claim 1 in which the platen moveshorizontally and the grooves in the abutment extend vertically, thecylinders in one vertical row resting on each other at their bases.

3. In a very heavy-duty press construction, the combination comprising:a pair of spaced earthen masses providing a pair of spaced opposedfaces, each mass being a part of the earths crust and connected therebyto the other mass; an abutment in work-load transmitting relation toeach of said faces of the earthen masses; a stationary bed adjacent andin load transmitting relation to one of said abutments; a platen movabletoward and away from the bed to shape a work piece between the bed andplaten; and adjustable bracing means holding the abutments apart, saidbracing means comprising a plurality of compression members interposedbetween the abutments and each compression member including hydraulicmeans maintaining substantially uniform compression in the compressionmember at all times.

4. A press adapted to be supported within an opening in the earth havingopposed walls, comprising: a pair of spaced xed abutments, each abutmentbeing so positioned relative to one of said opposed walls of the openingas to be in abutting contact with said one Wall throughout substantiallythe entire exterior surface area of the abutment; a movable pressureplate between said abutments; work abutting means positioned between thepressure plate and one of said abutments comprising a movable platen anda fixed bed plate mounted in facing relationship respectively on themovable pressure plate and on said one abutment; load distributing meansmounted on facing surfaces of the pressure plate and said one abutmentto support thereon the work abutting means; pressure applying meansbearing against the interior surface of the other labutment and againstthe pressure plate to move the movable platen toward the stationary bedplate; and adjustable means normally adapted to maintain the abutmentsin abutting relation with the opposed walls of the opening within whichthe press is positioned,

5. A press comprising: -a base adapted to be supported on the bottom ofan opening in the earth having opposed walls and within which openingthe entire press is adapted to be housed; a pair of spaced fixedabutments supported upon said base, each abutment being so positionedrelative to one of said opposed walls of the opening as to be inabutting contact with said one wall throughout substantially the entireexterior surface area of the abutment; a

kmovable pressure plate between said abutments; work abutting meanspositioned between the pressure plate and one of said abutmentscomprising a movable platen and a fixed bed plate mounted in facingrelationship respectively on the movable pressure plate and on said oneabutment; load distributing means mounted on facing surfaces of thepressure plate and said one abutment to support thereon the workabutting means; pressure applying means bearing against the interiorsurface of the other abutment and against the pressure plate to move themovable platen toward the stationary bed plate; and adjustable meansnormally adapted to maintain the abutments in abutting relation with theopposed Walls of the opening within which the press is positioned.

6. 1n a heavy duty press adapted to be supported and housed within anopening in the earth having a plurality of earthen walls including abottom wall, two of said walls being opposed to each other, thecombination comprising: a pair of spaced abutments each formed anddisposed to bear outwardly against one of said opposed walls of thechamber over substantially the entire exterior surface of the abutment;a stationary bed plate on one of the abutments at an inwardly facingsurface of said one abutment; a movable platen disposed between the bedplate and the other abutment; pressure applying means disposed betweensaid other abutment and the movable platen for applying working forcesby moving the platen toward the bed plate, said pressure applying meansbeing mounted on the inwardly facing surface of said other abutment tobear thereagainst; a pressure plate movable with the movable platen anddisposed to receive the thrust of the pressure applying means; randmeans for guiding and supporting the pressure plate, includingfoundation means bearing against the bottom wall of the chamber.

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